Between the Social and the Personal: Israeli Male Gay Parents, Surrogacy and Socio-Political Concepts of Parenthood and Gender

Maya Tsfati, Adital Ben-Ari

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

This work focuses on the effects of dominant concepts of parenthood and gender on gay men who became parents through surrogacy. Based on the analysis of 39 in-depth, semistructured interviews with gay fathers, we show that gay fathers' parenting experiences are shaped by the heteronormative discourse on parenthood, yet they resist its gendered attributes. Gay parenthood is revealed as confronting the social concepts on parenthood, in particular on motherhood, and their socio-political meanings. The tension between the social concepts and the participants' perceptionsy leads them to confront their social environment and to construct alternative discourse to the social discourse of parenthood and gender, suggesting that gay parenthood subverts under existing concepts of parenthood, gender and their meanings within the state.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)42-57
Number of pages16
JournalJournal of GLBT Family Studies
Volume15
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Jan 2019

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2018, © 2018 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

Keywords

  • Parenthood
  • gender
  • same-sex parenthood
  • social change
  • surrogacy

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Gender Studies
  • Social Sciences (miscellaneous)

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